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Blaine Gabbert on Jags' QB battle: 'It's going to be a blast''

Bob.Mack@jacksonville.com Jaguars quarterback Blaine Gabbert throws a pass during a Nov. 4, game against the Lions at EverBank Field.

Something to keep in mind before Jaguars fans run quarterback Blaine Gabbert out of town after only 24 starts: He’s younger than Landry Jones and Tyler Wilson and just a few months older than Ryan Nassib and Zac Dysert.

Those are just four names mentioned as possible draft picks next month that would help pave Gabbert’s exit. But his age — he turns 24 on Oct. 15 — should be considered because it certainly has by new general manager Dave Caldwell and new coach Gus Bradley.

As the Jaguars prepare for the start of their off-season program Tuesday, Gabbert knows he’ll face competition to remain the team’s starter, it’s just a matter from whom. Sitting in a conference room in the Jaguars’ offices on Thursday, he portrayed a confident but realistic attitude.

“The best guy is going to win,” he said. “That’s why this sport is so intriguing to people and so fun to be a part of. The competition is daily. Every practice will be a mini-game. You need to put your best foot forward regardless of the situation. That uncomfortable feeling is a good feeling and that’s why good teams are successful — because they have that competition.

“It’s going to be a blast.”

Gabbert’s first two years have been anything but a blast — a 5-19 record and now getting ready to work with his third head coach/coordinator/position/playbook combination in as many years.

Meanwhile, five of his colleagues drafted in the first and second rounds in 2011-12 — Andy Dalton, Colin Kaepernick, Andrew Luck, Robert Griffin III and Russell Wilson — have started playoff games. (Christian Ponder was injured for Minnesota’s wild card game loss at Green Bay).

The comparisons are natural, but the circumstances are different. It’s fair to say Gabbert’s career has been stuck directly behind an eight-ball.

“Of course, the cards I’ve been dealt hasn’t been the ideal situation anybody wanted to come into, but I’m certainly not the first quarterback to go through this and I certainly won’t be the last,” Gabbert said. “It’s part of the business.”

ACCEPTING BLAME

Gabbert was minding his own business earlier this month when a former Jaguars assistant coach told Yahoo! Sports he should be called “Blame” Gabbert. “Nothing’s ever his fault,” the coach added.

“Anybody that knows me knows I’ve never deflected blame on anybody and I’ve always owned up to my mistakes,” Gabbert said. “I don’t want to blame anything on anybody — that was instilled in me early on. You own up to your mistakes, you be a man about it, you admit when you’re wrong and you move on. You can’t dwell on it.

“If you talk to anybody in the locker room, they would tell you, straight up, [passing blame] is not my personality and not the way I go about my business. It’s untrue and my thing is, put your name on it if you’re going to stay something like to the national media.”

While the ex-assistant was popping off, Gabbert was rehabilitating his injuries. He underwent surgery for a torn left labrum in late November and was cleared by James Andrews two weeks ago to increase his activity.

Of greater concern was the right forearm injury — just below the elbow on the inside part of the arm — sustained in the opening drive of the Houston game when Gabbert was hit by cornerback Danieal Manning’s face-mask. Andrews told the Jaguars the injury was rare for an athlete.

“That made me a little nervous,” Gabbert said. “He told me they see it a lot in high-trauma car accidents where your arm hits the steering wheel and ruptures the tendon. They had to get some second opinions but thankfully it was one of those decisions where we could let it ride and rehab it. Luckily the rehab has done what it was supposed to do. It took longer than expected, but all it needed was some time.”

When the Jaguars are allowed to do on-field work with the coaches in mid-April, Gabbert will be able to participate.

NO REGRETS

If Gabbert had chosen the college route like Wilson, Jones, Nassib and Dysert, he would be in this year’s draft. But he didn’t redshirt at Missouri and left after starting for two years.

“Looking back on it, I thought it was a great decision,” Gabbert said. “I have two years of experience under my belt and I’m only 23. I’ve seen a lot, been through a lot and played a lot of football. I look at the last two years as something that can help me.”

But the new coaching staff is looking almost entirely forward. When offensive coordinator Jedd Fisch spent a month watching all of Gabbert’s tape, he did so without knowing the route combination, the protection and the read progression.

“Nor will I spend a lot of time asking those questions,” Fisch said. “It will be about teaching our system.”

Gabbert has had several chats with Bradley, Fisch and quarterbacks coach Frank Scelfo this off-season. The real work begins this week.

“They’re a great group of guys,” Gabbert said. “I’m excited to get started and have the opportunity to play ball for them.”

As of now, Gabbert will have a chance to compete for the starting position and one of Bradley’s talking points to him is about eliminating the “outside noise.” But there is a segment of Jaguars fans who would choose Anybody Besides Blaine to be the quarterback.

Gabbert is asked if, when he’s around Jacksonville, he feels like the Jaguars’ starting quarterback.

“No question … and that’s the mindset you need to have and you need to carry yourself in a certain way,” he said. “The fans here are extremely loyal and extremely supportive and they want what’s best for this team. They want to see this team and this organization succeed and win. That’s what we’re working toward.”